The Shippy Side of Silencer
by C.I.TigerFan
Summary: Missing scenes from Silencer, as it turns out, a very shippy episode! B/A Chapter 4: Popcorn posted
1. Chapter 1

This is just a quick fic that I have been thinking about. This takes place during "Silencer". I liked this episode because I felt like it was the first truly "shippy" episode that I could recall seeing. The way Goren looked at Eames and Peter (the sign language interpreter) when they came in together, mid-morning, after tracking down the deaf director. We had just seen him staring at her empty chair with a far off look in his eyes. He hated Peter. I think it was all a product of JEALOUSY! Anyhoo, hope you enjoy.

**Chapter 1: What's his name...the interpreter?**

"Why do you let him call you Alexandra" he asked flatly, out of nowhere.

"What?" She looked up from across their desks, brow furrowed.

"The interpreter, you let him call you Alexandra." He tapped his pen on his portfolio.

"That _is_ my name, Bobby." She stood, rounded her desk, and headed toward interrogation.

"Yes, but, its...disrespectful." Bobby stood to follow her, portfolio in hand. "You're a detective. He should call you Detective Eames or….just….Eames."

"OK, Bobby." They walked next to each other down the hall. "You go interrogate. I think Pete...uh, the interpreter, is waiting for you in there. I'll be in in a minute." She patted him on the shoulder as she moved away, nudging him into the interrogation room. He watched her as she disappeared into the viewing room.

"Alexandra!" Peter called as he stepped out of interrogation. Alex stopped and turned to see who called. Peter started a slow jog toward her as Bobby stepped out into the hall. He watched as Peter stood too close to Alex and touched first her elbow, then her arm.

"Looks like the help is getting friendly with your girl"

Goren peeled his eyes from Alex and Peter and met Logan with a blank stare.

Logan pulled the lollypop out of his mouth with a smack and gave Goren a wink and a grin. Bobby said nothing. When he turned to continue his observation, Peter and Alex were walking toward her desk. Bobby followed suit.

"I'll be in touch," Peter was saying as he backed away from Alex and straight into Bobby.

"Oh, excu...sorry, detective." His voice went from a good natured apology to a respectful disdain.

Bobby lifted himself to his full height. Peter instinctively took two steps back. He nodded to Bobby, "detective" and turned back to Alex. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Goodnight" Alex offered and turned back to Bobby.

"What is with you?"

"What?" Bobby said as innocently as he could and turned away from her to sit back down at his desk.

Alex spun and landed in her own desk chair. "You've been acting weird all day."

"I have?" He kept his head buried in a file.

"Yeah, you have"

Bobby looked up, half opened his mouth to speak, but didn't, shook his head once and looked back down.

"_OK_ then" Alex said, more to herself than to him and went back to work.

She could feel Bobby looking at her periodically, but she could never catch him in the act.

At the end of the day, Alex stood to leave. "That's it for me, Bobby. Are you about done?"

"Yeah, just one more file."

"I'll see you in the morning then." Alex stood to leave.

"You have plans tonight?" Bobby asked, thinking back to the conversation he couldn't hear between Alex and Peter.

"No, it's Thursday, right? I'll probably stop by Wong's Wok and pick up a #7 on the way home, like I do _every _Thursday night"

Bobby smiled. "Good," he said with a little too much cheer.

Alex started to speak, but shook her head instead and headed for the elevators.

_**Friday morning, 1PP**_

When Alex arrived at her desk, Logan and Bobby were having what looked like a fairly heavy conversation.

"Morning Gorgeous," Logan offered as Alex hung her coat on the back of her chair.

"Good morning, Mike," she said flatly.

"Where's your puppy?"

"My what?"

"Your new best friend"

Alex looked blankly at Logan.

"The interpreter………what's his name?"

He looked at Bobby and Bobby just shrugged.

"Peter………..His name is Peter. And what is _with _everybody? First the captain, now you, and yesterday, Bobby was all over me because he called me by my first name. Why are you over here anyway, Logan? Get your _butt _off my desk."

"You're a real peach first thing in the morning, Alex"

"_He_ called me Alex, Bobby, are you gonna' take issue with him?" she snapped.

Bobby lifted his hands in surrender.

"I didn't call you _Alexandra_." He batted his eyes like a school girl.

"Don't you have your own desk to sit at? You're such an idiot"

"She's all your yours, friend"

"Thanks Logan...always a big help"

"I do what I can." He winked at them both. "See you later doll"

"Go!"

Alex sat down at her desk. She could again feel Bobby staring at her. Without looking up from her laptop she snapped, "What, Bobby?"

"Ah………nothing……….I…….what?"

She threw him a frustrated glance. "You're an idiot too." With that, she turned back to her laptop and started punching buttons.

"Where are we on the doctor's murder?"

They both jumped and turned to see Ross standing in their collective area.

"Captain,"Alex nodded.

"Detective Eames," he returned the nod, "Goren".

"The director is on a hunger strike," Alex began, "We're bringing his star back in today along with her boyfriend. There's something there we're missing." Bobby sat quietly while Alex filled Ross in on the latest.

"When do you expect them?"

"I have to call Peter and see when he can come in to interpret the interview. The boyfriend is completely deaf."

"Well let's get on it. There's your interpreter now."

Both Goren and Eames turned their attention toward the elevators. Peter came bouncing across the room to Alex's desk.

"_He does look like a puppy_," Bobby thought, "_an annoying little ankle biter_."

"Ready, Bobby………….Hello, Bobby."

He turned toward the voice calling his name. He had unknowingly been staring daggers through Peter, who seemed completely unaware, as _his_ attention was totally focused on Alexandra. "Are you ready to head to the school?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm ready."

Bobby lumbered behind as Alex and Peter chatted all the way to the SUV.


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you for reading. Sorry for the delay in posting. Sometimes life gets in the way!! Hope you enjoy and please review. Thanks!!

CHAPTER 2:Skittles and a Diet Coke

"Has he asked her out yet?" Logan trapped Bobby by the vending machines.

"No. He'll wait until after the interview."

"Skittles and a diet coke." Logan nodded at the contents in Bobby's hand. You're sweet."

"Shut up, Logan. We didn't get lunch."

"Aren't you gonna' get anything for yourself?"

"In a minute. The change machine is broken again."

"Like I said," he winked, "sweet." The two men walked back toward the bullpen. "Let me know if you need me to run any interference. Hey, doll." Logan shot a grin at Alex as he sauntered past her.

Alex looked at Bobby from across the desks. "What's he up to?"

"Who knows?" Bobby said as innocently as child.

"Thanks for the snacks. I'm starving. Where's yours?"

"I'm OK 'till dinner. You want to grab something after work? My treat." His dark eyes were hopeful in anticipation of her answer.

"Yeah, that'd be nice." She smiled and felt the heat flare in her cheeks as she momentarily lost herself in his gaze. She had to look away. _What the hell is wrong with me?_ She shook her head and turned her attention to her computer. "Oh, shoot." She wrinkled her nose.

"What? What's wrong?"

"I forgot. I told my sister I would look after Nathan tonight. Matt has a dinner party downtown………..something for work."

"Oh." Bobby couldn't completely hide his disappointment, not from Alex anyway. "That's alright, some other time."

"You could bring dinner to the house if you want to. Nathan always likes spending time with you. Besides, it would save me some time if you were in charge of dinner."

"Really?" Bobby said, delighted at the invitation. "I don't want to intrude."

"Since when have you been an intrusion? It'll be fun."

"OK. Nathan likes chicken and fries, right?"

"What kid doesn't? I have to pick him up at 5:45, no later. That means I have to leave here by 10 after 5, no matter what."

"10 after 5, Got it"

"Detectives, how did it go at the school?" Ross straddled the line between their desks with his hands in his pocket.

"They're in interrogation two. Peter went down to his department. He'll be back in a few for the interview."

"Very good"

Bobby felt like he should click his heels and salute. "_What a jerk_", he thought.

"Easy, Bobby. He's really not that bad." He turned his head to face Alex. He gave her a look that said _how did you know what I was thinking. _Alex rolled her eyes. "You're really not that hard to read, Bobby"

Bobby half smiled. "_Not for you anyway,_" he thought.

**5:00 P.M. 1PP**

Ross shook Peter's hand. "Thank you for your help. You were instrumental in the investigation and we thank you," he said indicating Alex and Bobby who were standing behind Peter. Peter nodded.

Ross then looked at his team. "You too, detectives. Nice work." With that he disappeared down the hall toward his office.

Bobby and Alex headed for their desks with Peter in tow.

"Alexandra, could I talk to you for a second?"

"Sure" Alex said, still standing as she shuffled through a stack of files on her desk. "Bobby, have you seen the luds on the Martin case?"

"No, but I'll look."

"Sorry, Peter, what can I do for you?"

"Over here," he said quietly and led her to the side of the filing cabinet.

"Alexandra," Bobby heard him say from Alex's desk, "I was wondering if you might like to have dinner tonight?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I can't. I already have plans. My….."

"Here they are Alex!" Bobby appeared, right on queue, before Alex could finish her sentence. Bobby's enthusiasm startled both Peter and Alex. Before either could recover, Bobby turned to Peter. "I was wondering, Peter, if I could go over a few things with you, ah…………….it's about the case, some……….signs that I'm having trouble with." Bobby gently pulled on Peter's arm and pointed him toward the small conference room. His tone conveyed a sense of urgency. Peter turned to Alex, "excuse us, please. I'll talk to you later?"

"Sure"

"Ah, Peter.…..this way." Bobby glanced up at the clock on their way to the conference room. 5:05 P.M. Alex would have just enough time to gather her things and head out, which is exactly what he saw her do from the conference room.

Logan, who had been watching from his desk, formed an evil grin and headed for the conference room. He knocked twice on the door and entered without an invitation. "Hey Goren," he said, leaning on the door, "your partner said to tell you, '6:00 sharp,' and don't be late," he added with a twitch of his eyebrow and a mischievous grin. Peter, who had had his back to the door, turned to look at Logan when he entered. He quickly looked back at Bobby when Logan left.

"You and Al………Detective Eames, you're ……."

"Thanks for your help. Excuse me," Bobby said as he shot past Peter and back into the bullpen. He pushed his chair in at his desk and looked across the room for Logan. Bobby found him at his desk smiling at him as he leaned back in his chair. He sent him a nod of thanks and Logan acknowledged the thanks with a nod of his own. Bobby was on his way to the elevators when Peter appeared in the bullpen still looking as if he had just been punched in the gut.

TBC

Thanks for reading. Reviews are always appreciated!


	3. Chapter 3

Sorry for the delay! Hope to get the rest of the fic out quickly! Hope you enjoy!

**Chapter 3: Wilbur Wilberforce**

"Alex!!" Bobby hollered as he stepped inside the door. "Food's here!"

Nathan came charging down the hall and jumped as high as he could to wrap himself around Bobby's leg. Without skipping a beat, Booby continued to make his way into the house. "Alex! Nathan! Now where could those two be?" He rounded the corner into the kitchen and found Alex at the refrigerator, filling three glasses with ice.

"Hey, Alex, where's Nathan?" The little boy started to giggle all the while maintaining his hold on Bobby's leg, much to the chagrin of Bobby's bad knee.

"I don't know. He was here a minute ago. I hope I haven't lost him!"

"I'm right here!!" Nathan squealed. Bobby began to look in all directions. "Where?"

"Down here, Bobby"

Bobby handed the bags to Alex and reached down to sweep the little boy up and over his head. "Down here? Looks to me like you're way up there!"

Nathan giggled and squealed as Bobby lowered him into a hug. "How have you been, little man?"

"Just good," he said. "What did you bring to eat?"

"Asparagus and lamb chops. Sound good?"

"Yuck!!! I like chicken"

"There might be some chicken in there. You sit and I'll see what's in the bag."

Alex had stopped to watch the banter between two of her favorite boys. She couldn't help but smile. "If only," she thought as she moved to put dinner on the table.

After dinner, Bobby cleared the dishes while Alex took Nathan for his bath. "Don't leave, Bobby. I'll be right back. I brought a new transformer to play with, ok?"

"I'll be right here when you're done with your bath."

Alex watched Bobby and Nathan tumble around on the floor. Bobby looked so relaxed. She loved his smile, and she loved his laugh even more. Unfortunately, both had been elusive lately. Nathan had Bobby's complete attention which left Alex the rare opportunity to observe Bobby without being noticed. She felt the butterflies as she let her mind wonder to a future with Bobby. She had entertained the idea before, but tonight, seeing so at ease with Nathan, she couldn't help but dwell on the possibility. She was brought out of her thoughts at the sight of something flying through the air. Nathan had taken to dive bombing Bobby from the oversized ottoman.

"OK, boys, time to wind things down. One episode of Scooby Doo and its sleepy time." She hated to break up the party, but it was already 30 minutes passed Nathan's bedtime. Nathan settled in Bobby's lap for his TV time. Alex watched out of the corner of her eye as Nathan grabbed Bobby's hand and played with his fingers. When the episode was over, Bobby carried him down the hall with the promise of a bed time story. Nathan crawled into bed flanked by both Alex and Bobby. Bobby told him an abbreviated version of the _Velveteen Rabbit,_ one of his favorites. When it was done, he kissed the little boy on the head. "Goodnight Natty."

Alex made sure he was tucked in and softly kissed his hand before slipping out of the room. Bobby was waiting in the doorway. He quietly closed the door as Alex stepped through. Without thinking, Alex turned into Bobby and stood on her toes to kiss him on the cheek. "Thanks, Bobby," she whispered before backing away. Bobby took a moment to process what had just happened as he watched Alex disappear down the hall.

In the den, he sat on the couch and started putting his shoes on to leave.

"Where are you going?"

"Um…..I…………I just thought………." He motioned toward the hall.

"No, no. You two had your fun. Now it's my turn."

"Uh…………" He just stared at her with that "deer in the headlights" look.

"Relax, Bobby, I rented a movie last night to watch after Natty went to bed."

"Right."

Alex chuckled as she moved to the TV.

"What did you get?"

"It's called _Amazing Grace_. It's about Wilbur Wilberforce. He fought to end the European slave trade in the 1700's."

"Yeah, I read his biography. He was……..persistent………..ahead of his time. His contemporaries thought he was crazy."

"Yes, except for his best friend, William Pitt. I read about Wilberforce in college. He was a dedicated man, to say the least. Reminds me of someone else I know"

Bobby stared at her blankly.

"There's also a decent love story" she said flatly as she started the movie and snuggled in next to Bobby on the couch.

TBC

This one was short, but sweet. At least I thought it was sweet. Let me know what you think!


	4. Chapter 4

Well, this is it, the last chapter. Hope you enjoy! Thanks for reading!!

**Chapter 4: Popcorn**

Bobby felt …………at ease for the first time in a long time. Alex had wiggled and squirmed until she was finally comfortable curled on the couch like a cat with her head resting on Bobby's leg. It had taken Bobby a minute to relax once Alex found her spot. Because he had no other place to rest is arm (or so he told himself), his hand ended up on her shoulder. As he relaxed, so did his hand. He gently trailed his fingers up and down her arm. Alex wished she could make time stop for she knew, once the movie was over, Bobby would stand to leave, perhaps pause for a moment like he sometimes did before saying goodbye, but, in the end, he would leave………….and that would be that, except that her heart would break a little more.

"Not this time"

"11:25," Bobby answered.

"What?"

"You asked for the time."

"Right," Alex responded. She hadn't realized her thoughts had escaped.

"Are you getting tired? Ready for me to go?"

"The movie's not over. You want some popcorn?"

"Sure"

Alex stretched and headed for the kitchen. Bobby stood too to work a few kinks out of his back. "Well worth it," he thought. He could still feel the warmth where her head had rested on his leg.

Alex returned with the popcorn. They once again sat next to each other in the middle of the couch. As Alex reached for the remote, Bobby surprised the both of them. "Are you gonna' go out with Peter?"

Alex stopped, mid reach, and nearly dropped the bowl of popcorn on the floor. She looked at Bobby and started to speak.

"That is what he was doing, isn't it? …………when I interrupted today. He was asking you out?"

Again Alex started to speak.

"I'm sorry I interrupted…………it's just………I wasn't thinking…………I just... I knewthat's what he was doing……….and, I don't know……….I just…………Are you?"

Alex waited a moment, not sure if he was going to let her speak this time or not. "Am I what, Bobby?" She asked in earnest, gently encouraging him to continue.

"Are you gonna' go out with Peter?"

"I haven't been out with a nice man in a very long time, Bobby."

His brow furrowed ever so slightly. She was up to something.

"It would be _fun_ to get out of this house. To get dressed up and go someplace new, someplace nice where I could eat, drink, and dance." She paused. "I bet Peter doesn't even dance." She was careful to sound over the top disappointed.

Bobby smiled. "I dance."

"Do you now?"

He nodded slowly. "I also know the manager at Senecios. He owes me a favor."

Alex lifted one eyebrow and slowly pulled a piece of popcorn into her mouth.

"I would probably have to wear something shor**t** and bla**ck** to a place like that, huh?"

Bobby felt himself heating up as she popped another piece of popcorn in her mouth. He would never look at popcorn in the same way again.

"So, you think you could get us a reservation for tomorrow night?"

"I think so," Bobby said with confidence and pulled out his cell phone to call information. He stood while he waited to be connected to Senecios. He started to pace out of habit. Alex listened as he made reservations for two for tomorrow night, 6:30p.m., by the fountain.

Alex got up from the couch and walked toward the kitchen with the popcorn. She stopped in front of Bobby. "You made the reservations?"

"Yes, mam"

"Good." She rocked up on her toes toward him and flashed him a sly grin. "I'll go call Peter and let him know we're on for tomorrow night." Before she could even land back on her heels, Bobby caught her by the waste and sent the popcorn flying.

"Like hell you will."

Her laugh was stifled by his lips. Hands now free of the popcorn bowl, they met behind his neck. They melted into each other, each kiss more frantic than the one before. Six years of unrequited passion came pouring out of Bobby. Alex felt the rush of emotion and was overcome. She was surprised when Bobby abruptly pulled away.

"What's wrong?"

Bobby shook his head.

"If you apologize to me Bobby, I swear, I'll kick you're a…"

"Alex!" He cut her off before she could finish.

Confused, Alex snapped "What?"

Bobby pointed over her shoulder. "We have company."

Alex turned to see Natty rubbing his eyes in the doorway.

"Oh, hey Buddy. You OK?" Alex turned to face the little boy.

"I heard a crash."

"Oooh, I'm sorry little man." Alex walked over and knelt in front of him. "I dropped the popcorn bowl. I didn't mean to wake you up."

"Can I watch some more Scooby Doo with you and Uncle Bobby?"

"Yeah, I think that sounds good. You two sit and I'll get it started."

In a replay of earlier events, Bobby and Natty snuggled in the chair while Alex changed out the movies. She looked over her shoulder at the two boys who held her heart. "My boys," she thought and settled into the couch, content ………finally content.

Fin

Thanks again for reading! As always, let me know what you think. Reviews are greatly appreciated!


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